Sorry 'bout that. I'm talking about the bus-route-map-book thingy (I put that in the subject). Does it have pinyin, too?

In preparation of my move to Beijing in August I did some research in an attempt to find a subway/transportation map of Beijing for Google Earth.

I found a good one, or what I think is a good one.
You can check it out on Google Maps here
or you can download the layer for Google Earth by going here.

if you know where you're going and know how to type in a little chinese, several websites can map out a route for you like google maps.

i use maps.sogou.com, but baidu has a version too. i find them to be not perfect, but generally pretty good about getting me where i want. sogou will also mix subway and bus in routes.

I avoid the bus at all costs. It is almost inhuman, like animals packed in on the way to the slaughterhouse. Taxis every day is too expensive (I live far from the city center) so I've mostly been riding my bike (apart from dead of winter). It's faster and a hellova lot less stressful than this:

"Hou zou! Hou zou!!"

So:

Is there any comprehensive English resource for bus commuters in Beijing? At all?

If not, I'm about to f-ing build one. I'm sick of people saying they're unusable.

I've been looking for ages.... if you find one I'd be glad to see it.
But if you know enough chinese to type it on a computer, you can map routes on google (hell even if you don't you can right click on your destination on the map for god's sake).... and when you get to the actual bus, they always have pinyin translations of the characters (plus the recording always announces the next stop in english)....
so really it is quite usable, just takes a tad more effort and awareness than the subway.

But to be frank, I wouldn't recommend it to the average expat. It can be quite stressful, especially if you're not acclimated to a "china life." (This isn't meant to be condescending in any way.)

I wish there would be enough sub stations to cancel every buses in town (which are one of the main sources of pollution in town). I don't think taking the bus is that hard, unless you've been in the city for two days only. Plus, you can ask around you (even with a broken chinese) people will show you the station you're looking for on the board with a broad smile on their face.
Now I personnaly think buses are slow, stinky, and you've got to fight your way in or run after the bus if it stops three miles away from the designated stop, that makes it an horrible way to cross the city.
Regarding the tube, let's face it, BJ subway's is pure sh*t too. Old, stinky, dangerous in some stations and you still have ladies collecting tickets...wtf... . Best subway in China is Guangzhou's one. Very new, high tech, clean, even better than HK's sub.

Agree! I used to take buses everyday in the morning to go to work. That was the worst time of each day. Another horrible thing about bus is that it is so unpredicatable, time wise. Like, I lived two bus stops away from my work, not far but not worth walking. If everything goes fine it should take me less than 10 mins to get to my office. But a lot of days it took me like 20 mins to wait for my bus, and 3 same buses came at the same time. That's rediculous! And of course I was late for work those days.

Subway, a little bit better, but you still have to fight you way into the train during rush hours. Personally Line 1 is the worst, and Line 13 is the second worst.

I've never had any problems with the bus system here. True the timing can be unpredictable, but with the traffic the way it is here I think the buses do ok and are a cheap option.
I mostly use my bicycle though and I've found it to be about the same for time as the buses.

are you kidding me? have you ever taken a bus during the rush hour?

Beijing bus system is unreliable, inconvenient and unprofessional.

Take buses number 352 and 750 for example. They are never on time. Sometimes 4 buses get here at the same time, all of them crowded. And next time you see a bus coming it'll be 40 mins later.

And another beijing bus nightmare: they don't tell you when and what bus line is gonna be canceled. Number 743, a pretty convenient line which connects all my friend's apts, was pulled out of the system without a word informed. I was waiting for that bus for half an hour for the bus sign was still up, then i finally asked some guy in yellow shirt working at the bus stop where the hell the bus went, he looked shocked and was like, stop waiting! 743 is gone for good! How am i supposed to know that line is gone. The sign was still there!

70% of the beijing buses are crowded 70 percent of the time during a day. and plus there are always chinese perverts trying to rub on you for some reason.

I have been taking beijing buses all my life and I hate it! subway is a little better but that long-arse distance to transfer and people jumping in front of the train are really pain in the arse.

Walking and bike are the best choices so far.

Fun fact:

There is a night bus from Tuanjiehu down to Guomao and out to the east 5th ring along Yaojiayuan Road. 214 is the name of the line, and it's how I commute to & from Sanlitun now. f*** taxis. f*** bikes. Got me a night bus, .4 to get home, I'm SET.

Don't live along that route? You have two choices. A) move, b) search for one of the other 13 night bus lines that goes by your house. Most of them pass somewhere in the inner city. Any 200 bus is your best friend at midnight. Empty and quick they are.

it is horriable

Take bus 307 or 731 there and get off at Zhonguancun. I forgot exactly what the name of the stop is but I'm sure you can tell once you get close. 307 is usually crowded and it's a big bus with no air-condition. 731 is better, less crowded, air-conditioned.

Ok, can find my place on map.baidu.com. And now? How do I find the buslines?